Nearly eight months after the "nappy headed hos" scandal almost destroyed his radio career, a contrite Don Imus returned to the airwaves yesterday with two new black cast members and a vow to lift the discussion of race relations on his show.

"I thought he struck the right balance," said Tom Taylor, news editor of industry Web site Radio-Info.com. "He wasn't offensive. He has a chance to start a new, national dialogue about race relations and I think he understands that."